"Vic Broccolino has been a pillar of leadership in the Howard County community for more than two decades," Johns Hopkins Hospital and Health System President and Johns Hopkins Medicine Executive Vice President Ronald Peterson said in a release. "Since bringing HGCH into Johns Hopkins Medicine in 1998, Vic has advocated to the Hopkins community the vital role of a community hospital in the delivery of care.

"Through his outgoing personality and commitment to the community, coupled with a tremendous respect for the potential associated with the promise of medicine that Johns Hopkins offers, he has built a strong community hospital that is well-positioned to succeed in the quickly changing world of health reform."

The hospital, which has 249 beds and last fiscal year provided services to more than 204,000 people, has doubled in size during Broccolino's tenure, officials said.

The hospital's board of trustees and the Johns Hopkins Health System will begin actively planning for the transition of Broccolino's retirement, hospital officials said.

Broccolino said he will use his retirement to spend more time with his wife, children and 11 grandchildren, according to a release from the hospital, .

"Anyone who knows Vic understands the passion and dedication he has for his work and for the patients the hospital serves," Evelyn Bolduc, chair of HCGH's board of trustees said in a release. "His vision and leadership are but two reasons the hospital has enjoyed tremendous growth and clinical success in the last 23 years. His attention to patient safety and quality of care, coupled with his focus on the entire HCGH family, has resulted in the hospital becoming the best community hospital in Maryland."